Looking as though he needed a warm cup of soup, Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning walked through the Denver locker room with a towel draped around his waist. On a Sunday afternoon when it was 18 degrees at kickoff, Manning had kicked Old Man Winter's rump and stomped Tennessee 51-28. A good day's work. But it wasn't done.

"Hey, didn't we win the game?" asked Manning, his most valuable throwing hand gripping on a white towel. "There's cold water in the shower."

No soup for Manning. His reward for 397 yards passing on a franchise-record 39 completions?

A frigid shower. Hey, we know Manning is meticulous in his preparation. But does any quarterback really need goose bumps on his goose bumps to get ready for playoff weather?

And maybe knuckleheads throughout the NFL can stop asking if Manning is tough enough to beat the cold.

Here's a statistic that blows the mind:

John Elway, the greatest professional athlete in Colorado history, started 231 times from 1983-98. He never produced 50 points in any regular-season game with the Broncos, not even when tight end Shannon Sharpe and running back Terrell Davis were his sidekicks.

With three games remaining on the 2013 schedule, the Broncos of Manning already have topped 50 points on three occasions.

When told that fact, the eyes of Denver running back Knowshon Moreno grew as wide as saucers with amazement.

"We all know what John Elway did was amazing," Moreno said. "But, offensively, we're just trying to keep up with Peyton. He's always pushing the limits. And you can never outthink him. You've got to be on your P's and Q's all day, every day."

Manning is constantly in a hurry, hurry. Snap the ball quicker. Score faster. In a blur of 4 minutes and 58 seconds that spanned the end of the second quarter and the beginning of the third period, Broncos tight end Julius Thomas scored on a beautiful 8-yard pass, Matt Prater kicked an NFL-record field goal from 64 yards and Demaryius Thomas grabbed a 4-yard touchdown throw from Manning. Just like that, an 11-point Tennessee advantage turned into a 27-21 Denver lead.

Surrender the Titans.

To tell the truth, Manning appeared uncommonly hot and bothered throughout much of his team's 11th victory, lecturing receivers after dropped passes and getting grouchy with offensive coordinator Adam Gase, even after Denver put points on the board.

"Animated?" Manning said with a laugh, describing his feisty mood. "Adam and I are on the same page. We both want the same thing. We want to score touchdowns. We were both frustrated when we're down there close and have to settle for a field goal, especially when the game might be something of a shootout."

Gase and Manning both burn hot. That's a good thing.

Here is an example of their intensity and commitment to perfection: After Montee Ball scored to put Denver up by 23 points late in the fourth quarter, Manning and Gase weren't done. They studied overhead photographs of formations and plays while plopped side by side on the Broncos' bench.

"That's kind of his little spot, as well as my little spot, so we can talk about that series and the upcoming series," Manning said.

On that humble little spot on the bench, all big things by the Denver offense are born.

When the temperature drops to the teens, Manning is better than 99.8 percent of all NFL quarterbacks who have played on 70-degree afternoons. Against Tennessee, Manning threw 59 times, more passes than he had attempted in a single game during all his seasons in a dome with the Indianapolis Colts.

When I approached Gase after the rout to congratulate him on an awesome cold-weather game plan, he smiled and gave a reply not fit for print. But his message was clear: Think this prolific offensive machine cannot turn over the engine and get humming on a winter day?

Incinerate that foolish idea in Hades.

The Denver defense is hurting, with key starters Kevin Vickerson, Rahim Moore, Champ Bailey and Derek Wolfe more than injured. All four defenders are either out for the season or questionable to return.

For the Broncos to win a championship, Manning needs to stay hot, from now through the Super Bowl.

Denver is averaging 39.6 points per game, best in league history.

What's offensive perfection for these Broncos? 60 points? 75?

OK, before getting carried away with excitement, maybe we could all use a cold shower.

Lockheed says object part of 'sensor technology' testing that ended ThursdayWhat the heck is that thing? It's fair to assume that question was on the minds of many people who traveled along Colo. 128 south of Boulder this week if they happened to catch a glimpse of what appeared to be a large, silver projectile perched alongside the highway and pointed north toward town.

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